How to introduce a calmer environment into your home

Posted on Thursday, October 5th, 2017

Entrance with your entrance

First impressions count, so make your entrance halls as attractive and calm as possible, so you feel good when you step into it. Keep as little as possible in your hall, nothing at all if it’s narrow, just paint it in a pale colour and hang a mirror on the wall. 

Make a haven

We’ve probably all been faced with a home that’s chaotic at one time or another; but if at all possible, create one space that’s a haven you can retreat to while you work on the rest of the house. 

Storage is your friend

Invest in storage; it will help you more than anything else to create a calm environment in your home. Given it’s so often out of sight, storage is often also out of mind, but make it central to your plans. Good storage is the building block on which you’ll build an oasis of calm.

Cut out clutter

It’s easier said than done, but the best thing you can do to make your home feel calm is to cut down on your clutter. Enlist a friend to help; as if you’ve made an arrangement you won’t duck out of it, then prepare well. Ensure you have all of the boxes, marker pens and packing material you need, so you can sort items into boxes for the charity shop and boxes for the tip. Keep those things that give you joy and get rid of those items that have negative associations.

Purpose takes priority

Dress each room for its purpose; try not to have additional or extraneous items in them. It’s very easy to turn a spare bedroom into a space for everything you don’t know what to do with, but avoid this if you can.    

Let the light in

Maximise the natural light in your home by using light reflective paint, putting up additional mirrors or by using window dressings that let a gentle light in, like voile panels. Light equals calm, so let it into your life.     

Bring the outside inside

Introduce the natural world into your home, put aromatic herbs in your kitchen, a few pelargoniums on your windowsill, add a terrarium as a focal point or simply put some fresh seasonal flowers in a vase.

Don’t neglect scent

Scent has an incredible ability to evoke memories and instil a sense of well-being, so don’t neglect the contribution it can make to creating a calm environment in your home. A bowl of dried lavender may soothe and relax you, as may your favourite flowers or a scented candle of choice.   

Music moves

In addition to scent, music has the power to help us de-stress, relax and wind down. In fact, some studies have gone further linking music to lowering blood pressure, slowing the pulse and reducing levels of the stress hormone. So, a little slow, quiet classical music might just do the trick.  

Colour questions

Also, ask yourself which colours uplift and leave you with a positive feeling. Whether you are looking at a full-scale redecoration project or just want to add a few accessories, consider which colours make you feel joyful and embrace those.    

So now it’s time to make your home the haven of calm you know it can be, don’t be despondent, every step you take, is a step in the right direction.